unabashed

adjective

un·​abashed ˌən-ə-ˈbasht How to pronounce unabashed (audio)
: not abashed : undisguised, unapologetic
unabashedly adverb

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The Difference Between Abashed and Unabashed

To abash someone is to shake up their self-possession, as illustrated by Charlotte Brontë in her 1849 novel Shirley: "He had never blushed in his life; no humiliation could abash him." When you are unabashed you make no apologies for your behavior (nor do you attempt to hide or disguise it), but when you are abashed your confidence has been thrown off and you may feel rather inferior or ashamed of yourself. English speakers have been using abashed to describe feelings of embarrassment since the 14th century, but they have only used unabashed (brazenly or otherwise) since the 15th century (not that there’s anything wrong with that).

Examples of unabashed in a Sentence

She is an unabashed supporter of the president's policies. unabashed by their booing and hissing, he continued with his musical performance
Recent Examples on the Web But between anecdotes about Woody Harrelson saving his life and dunking on teens at the YMCA while on tour, a pure, unabashed love for music permeates every page. Allaire Nuss, EW.com, 28 May 2024 Where the republic’s hypocrisy fed its fatal weakness, corruption, the Taliban’s unabashed brutality was consonant with the movement’s strength, its unity. Matthieu Aikins Victor J. Blue Peter Ganim Krish Seenivasan Steven Szczesniak, New York Times, 22 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for unabashed 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unabashed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English unabaiste, from un- + abaiste, past participle of abaissen, abaishen to abash

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unabashed was in the 15th century

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Dictionary Entries Near unabashed

Cite this Entry

“Unabashed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unabashed. Accessed 1 Jun. 2024.

Kids Definition

unabashed

adjective
un·​abashed ˌən-ə-ˈbasht How to pronounce unabashed (audio)
: not abashed : not embarrassed or ashamed
unabashedly adverb

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